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A very valuable book. I've been looking forward to reading it for some time and it didn't disappoint. The authors provide meaningful research and examples, specific tools and insights that have shaped my thinking and approach to my own balance and engagement. Their case is compelling and I'm very glad I read this book- I highly recommend it.
His Orlando-based program has now been expanded to including clients beyond top tennis players - other top professional athletes, the Special Forces, Homeland Security, and executives from Fortune 500 companies. "Power of Story" began my relationship with books authored by Jim Loehr. But it was the quality of this book that drew me to reading his first, the New York Time's bestseller, "The Power of Full Engagement." Loehr has earned a prominent place on my bookshelf and on my list of highly recommended books. He did not focus on their technical or tactical skills but rather, focused on helping them manage their energy more effectively in the service of whatever mission they were on. Before knowing Loehr and his body of work, I implemented a number of his suggestions and can add from my experience that he is on to something profound. Both are excellent for those who are stalled in their career (particularly those in-transition) or in living a good life.
These are presented in two parts: the dynamics of full engagement; and the training system. Unlike most of his followers, I began with his last book rather than his first. "The Power of Full Engagement" is built around four principles:1.Full engagement requires drawing on four separate but related sources of energy: physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual.2.Because energy diminishes with overuse and with underuse, we must balance energy expenditure with intermittent energy renewal.3.To build capacity we must push beyond our normal limits, training in the same systematic way that elite athletes do.4.Making change that lasts requires a three-step process: Define Purpose, Face the Truth, and Take Action. "Power of Story" was featured in one of my 2009 Catholic Business Journal Columns and "The Power of Full Engagement" will be front and center in a speech I will give in 2010. Loehr built his career by working with top tennis players (Pete Sampras, Jim Courier, Gabriela Sabatini, Monica Seles among many others) getting them to perform at their highest level. Loehr also provides numerous resources at the end of the book including a "Full Engagement Development Plan Worksheet." Loehr contends that there is a paradigm shift needed to a life not overburdened - but to one in which energy, not time, becomes the fundamental currency of high performance.
"The ultimate measure of our lives is not how much time we spend on earth, but rather how much energy we invest in the time we have."
The background of these two authors provided outstanding credibility, and I was significantly challenged by the principles therein. Specifically, their emphasis on the importance of proper rest and sleep caused me to change my life-long practice of burning-the-candle-at-both-ends. I now pay more attention to rest and nutrition.
For all those beleaguered 21st century multi-taskers who don't understand why their lives never seem to be in control; this book will provide the relief you need. As the authors state, energy is "the fundamental currency of high performance". The good news: You are now allowed to lead a normal and much more productive life (which incidentally, could last much longer now).Jim Loehr & Tony Schwartz have compiled a wonderful study into the previously murky waters of "full engagement". After you read this book, you'll have an entirely different perspective on what your priorities should be, and in the process, bring energy to your endeavors that you thought you never had; or at least, forgot you had.The central theme revolves around energy, not time. The organization that skillfully manages "energy" makes full engagement possible; which in turn, maximizes its productivity by emotionally and mentally connecting its employees.By following the guidelines the authors lay out, the enlightened organization will experience a new high performance paradigm shift; great results are achieved by focusing on energy, not time. It makes perfect sense; let's hope corporate America fully embraces this concept.
If you're an incredibly busy person who feels like life can get incredibly overwhelming, you need to read this book. The case studies in this book are incredibly relatable. WHat I found most helpful, was the suggestions on taking short breaks to recharge your energy and the importance of creating rituals.Speaking as someone who lived his life in a "all or nothing" way, the suggestions in this book were hard to establish, but once a did, they changed things for me dramatically. I experience much less stress and feel like I have control again.
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